The Delhi High Court recently mandated the shutdown of a website found to be impersonating Tata Sons Private Limited, using the site to promote a Ponzi scheme.
The fraudulent website, operating under the domain “www.tatarestart.com,” was accused by Tata Sons of luring unsuspecting investors with promises of unrealistic financial returns.
Justice Sanjeev Narula issued a directive for an ad-interim injunction against Tata Restart, the entity behind the website, ordering it to cease the use of the “Tata” name or any marks similar to those registered by Tata Sons.
The court’s order includes the immediate takedown of the website and instructed the domain name registrar to block or suspend the domain.
The court’s decision came after Tata Sons presented evidence of trademark infringement, citing the unauthorised use of the “Tata” mark which could potentially confuse and deceive consumers.
The court noted that the domain and the mark “TATA RESTART” were not only deceptively similar to Tata Sons’ own registered domain and trademarks but also indicated dishonest intent in their use.
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In its ruling, the court stated: “Such use of Plaintiff’s trademark on the website, as depicted in photographs above, is bound to cause consumer confusion and association with Plaintiff as Defendant No.1 has wholly incorporated the Plaintiff’s registered mark ‘TATA’ in its website domain www.tatarestart.com, and marks ‘TATA RESTART’.”
The court further noted that without the injunction, Tata Sons would likely suffer irreparable harm, affirming that the balance of convenience favoured the plaintiff.
